Ball gown skirt progress

Oddly enough I found the skirts the most challenging. Well the underskirt went together easily enough, and the pleated trim went on just fine mind you it took awhile because I was hand pleating.

But it was the over skirt that really got me stuck, I went through 3 versions before I was finally happy. 

The problem is that my white material is very heavy and didn't want to drape gently but rather plummet aggressively toward the floor pulling very gentle fold out and causing the whole piece to get caught up in my feet when walking.

So the second iteration was to set the panel in wide pleats. While this prevented the previous problem I hated the look.

So I want back to the original idea and rather then just gather the outside edges I added an additional gather line to the dead center. This helped hold the gentle folds in place and gave the look I had in my head. I just added the little smooth strip down the front to hide the stitches.

I got the idea while looking at fashion plates and noticed that many of the very long gathered overskirts had a center line like I had created probably for the same purpose :)  

This Years Big Victorian Ball Gown

The spring SDI ball is this coming weekend, and as it is kinda a special occasion in my world, I like to go all out with my dress for it. Last year was the cupcake dresshttp://cursewordsandcrinolines.blogspot.com/2012/04/cupcake-post-project-notes_05.html?m=1

This year I was initially thinking a ball gown to go with the dress I wore to the light house picnic at the end of the summerhttp://cursewordsandcrinolines.blogspot.com/2012/08/details-of-lighthouse-dress.html?m=1

Here were some of my ideas:

But then I found myself getting caught up in the natural form era:

It's really kind of an awkward era with the constrictig narrow skirts with the haphazard decoration but the exaggerated long bodices and the long sweeping trains really got stuck in my head :)
So instead I am making a natural form ball gown and using the same fabrics as the light house dress. My guide an inspiration is the blue dress in the fashion plate below:

Embracing the challenge

Challenge #4 was all about the decoration and while I stayed small and simple others went big and the results were wonderful all the way around.

My favorite was the fringed regency dress done by Ginger from scene in the past.
http://sceneinthepast.blogspot.com/2013/03/historical-sew-fortnightly-4.html
The fringe is a great simple way to embellish regency that I hadn't thought of and I love the pattern of her dress most especially the pleated bodice front.

I was most impressed with the stunning beading work of black tulip! And not just the beading but also painting on a design and them beading it.
http://blacktulipsewing.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/embellishment-challenge.html?m=1
Her work has great detail with a clean look of professionalism and I cant wait to see the finished project :)

And last but not least I have to give a huge shout out to the stunning work done by Marion over at Green Martha, her embellished chemise puts my own far to shame :)
http://green-martha.blogspot.fr/2013/02/la-chemise-en-pratique.html?m=1
I love the tucking and lace insertion, it just has such an authentic feel. And it sounds like it was all done with out pattern and mostly hand stitched, most impressive! And then add in all the research she put into it that is so very thorough and most informative!

HSF Challenge # 5

Challenge #5: "As wonderful as making pretty, pretty princess dresses is, the vast majority of people have always been poor commoners, whether they were peasants working the land, servants in big houses, or (later), pioneers carving their own space in new lands. This fortnight let's make something that celebrates the common man."

For this challenge I chose to make an 18th century mob cap because regardless of class every 18th century girl needs one :)

Fabric: very fine cream linen, from the stash.

Pattern: no pattern, I just made it up as I went based on pictures and extant pieces. This was actually not a good thing as I really don't like the look of my cap, and I think a real pattern would help me like the cap better. Next time I make a cap I want to try the JP Ryan pattern

http://www.jpryan.com/caps.htm

Year: 18th century

Notion: just thread.

Historical Accuracy: I'm going to go wild and give this a 9 out of 10 and that's because of the fact that I completely hand sewed the whole cap and the materials are accurate for the period. So even though I don't like the look of the cap, the materials and construction are accurate for the period.

Hours to complete: 6 from cutting out to the last little stitch.

First worn: not yet, might not ever get worn if I really hate it enough and end up making a better one with a real pattern ;)

Total cost: $0, all from the stash!

18th Century Mob Caps

Because every 18th century girl needs a good mob cap, and I needed a little inspiration for making mine :

Tutorial - Hair Rats

How to make easy cheap hair rats, from not real hair.

I a lot of hair styles in most eras from Georgian through vintage require volume in some way and while teasing can get you only so far, hair rats are very versatile and always period. But not many of us have hair to spare or the time to gather it all up and contain it. 

So here is my cheating version of hair rats:
Start with one of those round chignon forms you can find at just about any beauty supply shop, they are usually only a couple of dollars each. You'll also need a packet of hair nets, needle and thread and a utility scissor.

Start by cutting open the form

Then cut a section off the end, this depends on the size you want. For something little like the size of my ear I cut off just over an inch, for something big like my fist I use about half.

Take that little cut off section and in roll it gently then pile it back up into a ball shape.

Now use one of the hair nets to wrap up the piece and contain it. I usually wrap my hair net in half then in half again, then wrap it around the piece.

I add a few long stitches to kind of contain the whole thing but I don't think it's necessary, the whole thing really wants to stick together all on its own.

TaDa, enjoy :)

Teens era hat - project notes

Since the last post was about a teens era event i thought I would finally post the project notes from making my teens era "Lady Mary" style hat. This was made last year for all the titanic events but it just never made it up, so here you go: 

I chose to attempt to make a small style teens hat rather then try to find an original to buy ( nearly impossible, or too expensive). I chose the small style rather then the more obvious very large wide brimmed hats that dominated the edwardian era. 

The two main reasons being: one the event was a dance and a large hat would be in the way and two I had just finished watching season two of Downton Abby, in which Lady Mary is often seem wearing a red walking suit with this matching hat.

So for my navy blue wool walking suit I would make a wool felt hat to match.
Since I was working with only what I could find in the sewing room and around the house. I took a modern wool felt cloche hat purchased previously from Target, for some other event, and removed its grosgrain ribbon hat band and ripped out the stitching that had the edge of the brim rolled up over a thin plastic wire. 

My tools for shaping the hat were: a glass kitchen bowl about the same size as the hat, tin foil and my iron. 

I used the bowl to hold the shape of the crown when I rolled the brim up. I only rolled about 3/4 of the brim up, leaving flat one side and the rest sloping up. The tin foil I made into rolls about an inch or so in diameter that I placed at the base of the crown between rolled up brim and crown, this was to help maintain the "rolled" bottom edge as I steamed the hat into shape rather then have it squish flat and create a sharp crease.

Next was lots of steaming and squishing and steaming and readjusting and steaming and rolling and steaming and . . . Well you get the idea. The shaping took lots of fussing, but eventually I got it into a shape I was fairly happy with. Though at that point the brim was far too tall so I had to trim it down till I thought it was proportional and mostly resembling the Lady Mary hat. NOTE: measure twice and cut once! Or even better start with a small amount and then shave it down little by little so you don't accidentally take off more then you would have liked, because you can't add it back on ;) this is how it looked at the end of all that.

Later I added the original grosgrain ribbon back in as the hat band and trimmed the edge of the brim with matching bias tape to even the edge out. The hat came with a matching felt bow which I left on as the only accent on the hat, it was simple yet elegant detail, that I didn't have to create :)

And Ta Da!

Lanterman Tea Dance

Last weekend Michael and I attended a Teens era tea dance at the historic Lanterman House. This is the second time we have attended this event and it was just as enjoyable this year as it was last.

The house and its surrounding grounds are beautiful and well maintained. The house has been almost completely restored and features nearly all of its original furnishings and decorations. The dance is held in the upstairs ballroom.

Live music and singing is provided for the dancers, featuring the music of the teens and early twenties which is really very easy to dance to as it is either some variation of a one step or two step :) Michael and I always have fun with this era of dancing because there is so much room for variation from the most complex "tango" to a simple stroll around the perimeter.

The tea is served in the central courtyard outside and is always very tasty.

Michael chose to wear one of his morning suit combinations for the event as he often doesn't have much opportunity to wear it and it looks so dashing with top hat and cut away coat. I wore the same suit I wore last year, because it's a fabulous original from the teens and this is really our only Teens era event.

New Reading Material

My mother snagged this book for me recently thinking I would like it. And OMG has it been helpful! 

The book has sections on:
Knitting
Crochet
Embroidery
Sewing
Macramé
Rug making
And tatting

Each section has a brief history of the stitch style and different methods,along with directions and drawings to work each stitch.
The sewing section includes machine sewing as well as hand sewing.

The book is huge btw like bible thick but it has been invaluable the last few challenges what with hand sewing and all the embroidery.

HSF Challenge #4

Challenge #4: "Decorations make the historical garment glorious. Whether you use embroidery, trim, pleating, lace, buttons, applique, quilting, jewels, or any other form of embellishment, this challenge is all about decorative detail"

I chose to decorate my new chemise with embroidery and crocheted lace.

Fabric: the chemise is made of a cotton batiste

Pattern: the chemise kinda came from Simplicity 2890, minus sleeves. The embroidery pattern this book 

Year: I wear this style chemise from 1840s through 1890s

Notions: pale pink and white silk embroidery thread, knit trim with beading and a white satin ribbon

How accurate: 4 out of 10, the chemise was machine sewn and the knit trim is machine done for sure. The fabric an pattern are relatively period and the embroidery and design are plausibly period as well.

Hours to complete: the chemise went together in about two hours. The embroidery and trim took me another 10-14 hours, its hard to say for sure cause I worked on it bit by bit for the last three weeks.

First worn: not yet, but it will get used soon for sure

Total cost: $0, this was all stash fabric and notions

Embracing the challenge

Challenge #3: Under It All. "Every great historical outfit starts with the right undergarments, and, just in time for Valentines day, here's you're excuse to make them. Chemises, corsets, corded petticoats, drawers, garters, stockings…if it goes under your garments, it qualifies"

I loved all the pockets that were made for this challenge, it was a great variety of colors styles and sizes.

Kitty Calash made a regency petticoat that I just love! Its made out of a lovely sheer material and looks so floaty and ethereal. http://kittycalash.com/2013/02/11/hsf-3-under-it-all-a-shift-and-a-petticoat/

I always end up making my petticoats for warmth or structure and don't get to work in such light lovely materials. 

Tea in a Teacup made a pair of regency short stays that look great!! And she put in a lot of effort for drafting and hand stitching. But the part that I think is the best is that she also took the time to decorate them with embroidery!

http://teainateacup.wordpress.com/2013/01/21/making-regency-short-stays/

I love the idea of spending time making something beautiful that no one but you will really see. When I do it, it just makes me feel extra fabulous and indulgent ;)

The project that really took my breath away this time is from Living With Jane. She made an 1800s brassiere as seen in the Kyoto collection. I had never seen this garment before, but she totally recreated it from just an image!

http://livingwithjane.blogspot.com/2013/02/historical-sew-fortnightly-challenge-3.html?m=1

Hand drafted and draped and hand sewn using as period as possible materials, the brasserie is just incredible to me! Her work and not the norm choice make it very very impressive. And to top it off the darn thing looks super comfy! I think I want one :)

Next up is embellishment (which I still need to finish, behind schedule as usual ;) hope everyone has a good weekend!